The United States Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Oregon announces the availability of a Final Watershed Plan-Environmental Assessment and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the Klamath Drainage District (KDD) Infrastructure Modernization Project.

The project is located in Klamath County, Oregon and Siskiyou County, California and will install a fish screen at the North Canal Diversion on the Klamath River; extend the North Canal and connect it to the P‑1 Lateral enabling the delivery of water to the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge; modify the North Canal to increase flow capacity; upgrade two pump stations for operational efficiency and to reduce water discharge to the Klamath River via the Klamath Straits Drain; and install flow monitoring and automated gates throughout the project area to improve water management. 

The project is a joint effort among NRCS Oregon and KDD as the project sponsor and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as cooperating agencies, in coordination with other agencies, stakeholders, and the public. The project may be partially funded through the Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations Program, administered by NRCS and authorized by Public Law 83-566.

Pursuant to Section 106(b)(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (as amended through Public Law 119-21), and USDA National Environmental Policy Act Regulations (7 CFR 1b.6), NRCS gives notice that a FONSI has been issued and an environmental impact statement is not being prepared for this project.

The environmental assessment of this federally assisted action indicates that the project will not cause significant local, regional, or national impacts on the environment. As a result of these findings, Greg Becker, NRCS State Conservationist, has determined that the preparation and review of an environmental impact statement is not needed for this project.

This Notice has been forwarded to various Federal, State and local agencies and interested parties. The FONSI and other supporting planning documents are available at: https://watershedplans.org/klamath-dd.

No administrative action on implementation of the proposal will be taken for 30 days from the publication date of this Notice.

For more information, contact Gary Diridoni, NRCS, at (503) 414-3092 or gary.diridoni@usda.gov.